Minnesota Independent

Progressive group: Klobuchar’s felony streaming bill could ‘stifle innovation, jail ordinary citizens’

By Paul Schmelzer | 06.20.11 | 4:15 pm

As Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s bill to amend U.S. copyright law to make it a felony to stream copyrighted material online heads for a vote on the Senate floor, more attention is being paid. The nonprofit government transparency group MapLight notes that backers of the measure — which includes the Recording Industry Association of America, the Motion Picture Association of America, NBC and CBS, among others — have given more than $85 million to sitting senators in the last six years. And the progressive group Demand Progress is challenging Klobuchar’s assertion that the bill will only target “criminals” hoping to make big money from copyright infringement.

Bachmann, Pawlenty to speak at RightOnline in Minneapolis

By Andy Birkey | 05.31.11 | 8:00 am

Rep. Michele Bachmann and former Gov. Tim Pawlenty will be featured speakers at the RightOnline conference in Minneapolis in mid-June. The conference is the conservative movement’s answer to the progressive Netroots Nation, which will also be held in Minneapolis in mid-June. RightOnline is organizaed by Americans for Prosperity, a group funded by the Koch brothers. Pawlenty and Bachmann will share the stage with fellow presidential aspirant Herman Cain and controversial blogger Andrew Breitbart.

Rochester paper opposes marriage amendment

By Andy Birkey | 05.12.11 | 8:48 am

The Rochester Post Bulletin is the latest Minnesota newspaper to oppose the Republican’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. In a Wednesday editorial the paper argued that current Minnesota law on same-sex marriage is sufficient and a constitutional amendment is unnecessary. The Post Bulletin joins more than a dozen other papers throughout the state that have spoken out against the amendment.

‘Minnesota malicious’: Papers statewide pan GOP anti–gay marriage effort

By Andy Birkey | 05.09.11 | 5:30 am

Newspapers throughout the state have come out against a Republican bill that proposes a constitutional amendment barring same-sex marriage in Minnesota. The geographic breadth of opposition to the amendment, from the larger Winona, Duluth and Minneapolis to the southern Minnesota farming communities of Albert Lea, New Ulm, Fairmont and tiny Grant County in Western Minnesota suggests it may be a liability for Republicans instead of the turnout machine of years past. On op-ed pages, editors have called the amendment “unnecessary,” “malicious” and a “waste of time” — with one paper even called out several GOP lawmakers as “chickens.” So far, no editorial boards at Minnesota newspaper have come out in support of the amendment.

Breitbart, RightOnline coming to Minneapolis

By Andy Birkey | 04.13.11 | 3:36 pm

Billed as a “counter to the leftwing Netroots Nation Convention” being hosted by Minneapolis in June, RightOnline has announced it’ll also be coming to Minnesota’s largest city this summer. The conference will feature Andrew Breitbart, a blogger whose selective editing of video has generated heated criticism, along with conservative blogger Michelle Malkin, Glenn Beck protege S.E. Cupp, and Minnesota blogger Ed Morrissey. The convention is a project of Americans for Prosperity Foundation, which was founded by the Koch brothers.

House votes to halt federal funding of NPR

By John Amick | 03.17.11 | 2:26 pm

The U.S. House of Representatives voted Thursday to halt federal funding of National Public Radio by a largely partisan vote of 228-192. Minnesota’s delegation split along party lines with Democrats voting against the defunding measure.

Former Sen. Russ Feingold. Photo: WDCpix.com

Feingold to headline Netroots Nation 2011 in Minneapolis

By Paul Schmelzer | 03.17.11 | 12:26 pm

Netroots Nation had a strong Minnesota presence last year: Sen. Al Franken gave the keynote, and as he finished up, he announced that the progressive blog conference would be hosted by Minneapolis in 2011. Today, another midwestern angle was announced: Franken’s former Senate colleague, Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, will be giving an address to kick off the June 16-19 summit.

GOP House leaders fast-track bill to defund NPR

By John Tomasic | 03.17.11 | 11:46 am

Rep. John Kline is the only member of Minnesota’s congressional delegation to cosponsor Colorado Republican Doug Lamborn’s bill to ban federal funding for National Public Radio programming. Lamborn’s bill has gained traction among Republican House leaders just as a conservative media campaign waged against the public broadcaster has made news. Majority Leader Eric Cantor, looking to strike while the iron is hot, fast-tracked the bill, lining up a vote for today. The bill cuts no money from the federal budget.

O’Reilly: Bachmann, Palin snubbing media after Arizona shootings

By Andy Birkey | 01.14.11 | 3:17 pm

Conservative Fox News commentator Bill O’Reilly noted on Thursday that Rep. Michele Bachmann and Sarah Palin have snubbed the media over the last week — in particular his show. Bachmann, who in recent months has made multiple national cable appearances, has done none this week, according to her YouTube channel and a search of cable news websites. Bachmann went from six major media appearances to zero in the course of a week — the week following shootings in Tucson that some have said may have had something to do with violent rhetoric by the pair.

Bachmann hit 14 national media outlets in the last seven days

By Andy Birkey | 12.13.10 | 8:00 am

A study last year by the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota found that Rep. Michele Bachmann appeared on cable news programs every nine days on average. Last week, she shattered those expectations by appearing on a cable news program at least once a day from Tuesday through Saturday making 14 national television or radio appearances.